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GoDaddy Full Review: Pros and Cons in Details
Last Updated by Tala S. on
October 11, 2021
GoDaddy offers almost everything you need from your web hosting provider, starting with fast and reliable servers to a wide range of features. GoDaddy is an expert web host in the market, with dedicated 24/7 customer and technical support.
Quick Stats
Since 1997, GoDaddy has grown to become one of the most popular in the shared hosting category on the internet, with around 20 million customers worldwide.
The question is, what's the secret behind GoDaddy's success? And is it the right one for you?
And that's why we're here; to answer all your questions regarding GoDaddy's shared hosting.
GoDaddy's Hosting Services
GoDaddy offers various products depending on what you're looking for. These include:
- Shared hosting: Share a server with others. GoDaddy plans range between $8.99-$24.99/month.
- WordPress hosting: Host your WordPress blog or website with GoDaddy. It'll cost between $6.99-$15.99/month, depending on the plan you choose.
- VPS plans: To be able to configure your server based on your preference, VPS hosting starts from $4.99/month.
- Dedicated hosting: GoDaddy provides dedicated hosting starting from $129.99/month to have your own server.
In this review, we'll be focusing on GoDaddy's shared hosting plans. So, stay with us to find out everything you need to know about shared hosting.
GoDaddy's Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is all about sharing a server with others, usually recommended for small and medium businesses working on small projects and don't need a top-performing server.
Shared Hosting plans for GoDaddy vary between $5.99 and $19.99 for the first period, and like many other web hosting sites, the price increases at renewal.
There are four different shared hosting plans on GoDaddy:
| Economy | Deluxe | Ultimate (Recommended) | Maximum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Websites | One | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Domain Name | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Subdomains | 25 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Bandwidth | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Storage | 100 GB | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| E-mails | 100 | 500 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| SSL Certificate | NA | NA | For the first term | Unlimited |
| Max. files amount | 250,000 | 250,000 | 250,000 | 250,000 |
| Backup | Paid add-on | Paid add-on | Paid add-on | Paid add-on |
| Database | 10 | 25 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| FTP Account | 50 | 50 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Starting Price | $5.99/month | $7.99/month | $12.99/month | $19.99/month |
| Renewal Prices | $8.99/month | $11.99/month | $16.99/month | $24.99/month |
If you get too much traffic or use too many resources, GoDaddy will request you to upgrade your package.
Although the packages include many benefits from Microsoft Office to unlimited storage, some basic features are not included with the plans, including backup and SSL certificates.
Pricing
Pricing is the most crucial factor that might affect your decision. Well, are you getting the value for the money you're paying?
Here's the deal with GoDaddy; you're getting storage and many e-mails even if you're taking the basic plan. But, conversely, it can be a bit expensive due to the unavailability of essential add-ons (backups and SSL certificates) within the package.
The basic plan comes as an example; you will receive a free domain and Microsoft Office 365, 100 GB storage, unmetered bandwidth, and 1 website for $5.99/month and $8.99 for renewal; you get to build your website within minutes.
The Deluxe plan includes an SEO visibility guide and premium products. While the Ultimate plan and the Maximum plan have a free premium DNS and Free SSL certificate.
The money-back-guarantee differs depending on your plan; GoDaddy offers a 30-day money-back guarantee for the annual plan. Still, if you're signing up for the monthly plan, you'll get a 48-hour money-back guarantee, but not all your money will be refunded.
Payment Methods
How can you pay for your plans? You can pay for your plan either using PayPal or different credit cards. So it doesn't matter if it's Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Union Pay, and Discover.
Ease of Use
Using GoDaddy couldn't be any easier. I mean, if you're a beginner or an advanced customer looking for a web hosting site that won't give you a headache while setting it up, you're on the right site. You can even migrate your WordPress website and integrate CMS with one click. If you don't have a WordPress site, you can use GoDaddy's website building tool.
GoDaddy is not only recommended for beginners, but you'll be shocked to know it's popular among advanced users. This is because GoDaddy includes an easy-to-use cPanel and the ability to choose the PHP version you want. Over 150 applications, such as Drupal and Joomla, and different analytics tools can benefit developers while creating their websites.
Customer Service
If you're having a hard time using GoDaddy, don't worry about it. GoDaddy has 24/7 live chat and phone support. Not only that, but its phone support is available in several languages. Whether you speak German, Spanish, English, or Arabic, there's a support team to assist you in the language of your choice.
If you don't feel like contacting anyone, you can refer to their knowledge base to find some answers. It includes many beneficial articles that will guide you.
GoDaddy is one of the few web hosts that reviewed users' comments and improved their live chat to become faster and more reliable. In their live chat, there's a chatbot that lets you choose a problem category. Then, within a minute or two, you're connected with an agent that will help you with anything.
Security
Of course, you're looking for good security to host your website. GoDaddy has a satisfactory security service.
Password Protected Directories
Let's start by talking about taking an extra step to secure your information. It's simple; all you need to do is use the cPanel to set a password. This way, you can place the files that need protection in a protected directory, with no need to worry.
Spam Assassin Protection & Network Monitoring
The good news is there's a 24/7 server security monitor for any spam detection in your control panel and e-mail accounts. So your website and email are safe all the time.
Your e-mail data will be encrypted based on the security benefits of Microsoft Office 365. Not only that, but you'll also have an uptime of 99.9% based on Microsoft's guarantee.
Free SSL Certificate
The bad news is you need to pay extra for an SSL certificate for the Basic and Deluxe plans. If you're selling products online, you should consider buying an SSL certificate to safeguard your data and customer's information, as well as your service. It's also beneficial for better SEO ranking.
Hotlink Protection
There's a step-by-step guide in GoDaddy's knowledge base on how to enable hotlink protection. Hotlink protection is a security feature that prevents other websites from linking their files and pictures to your website.
Web Application Firewall & DDoS Protection
GoDaddy has a Web Application Firewall that monitors and filters HTTP traffic between the web app and the internet to protect your website from DDoS attacks and most attacks.
Site Backup
If you're looking for database backup and restore, it's available with every plan. But if you're looking for daily automated site backups, then you should purchase GoDaddy's Backup plan only for $2.99/month.
Load Times and Features
All GoDaddy's plans include:
- Bare metal servers: Harness the full processing power with single-tenant bare metal servers with root/admin privileges for complete server control- down to the kernel.
- Built-in security: Single-tenant infrastructure provides higher levels of security and control. And at the network level, you'll get powerful DDoS protection.
- SSD or HDD- your choice: Whether you want blazing fast read/write or tons of storage capacity, we've got you converted with HDD NVMe SSDs (up to 20× faster) storage options.
- Reliable 99.9% server uptime- guaranteed: Never miss opportunities to engage with a customer for a potential customer. That's why GoDaddy offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee. And if they don't uphold the guarantee, you may be eligible for a discount on your purchase during that time.
- State-of-the-art tech: Get top server hardware and software with Intel Exeon or AMD EYPC CPUs running CentOS, Ubuntu, or Windows servers.
- Easy-to-use control panel: Optional industry-standard cPanel/WHM or Plesk Webhost edition available on Linux CentOS.
- Expert dedicated hosting support: All plans come with free standard hosting support. Optional paid server management services include fully managed support and task-based services.
- Free SSL Certificate with Dedicated IP: Get datacenter-level DDoS protection with an SSL certificate. It's free for one year with the purchase of any annual hosting plan. After the initial year, SSL automatically renews at the then-current price until canceled. You may cancel automatic renewal at any time in your GoDaddy account.
Uptime & Speed
Despite hosting millions of websites, shockingly, GoDaddy has high uptime on an average of 99.99%. This is because GoDaddy keeps its load times fast by using Cloudflare CDN and SSD drives.
Features
No matter what plan you choose, it comes with many features for its monetary value. Let's take a look at the features offered by GoDaddy:
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Free domain
- Easy-to-use cPanel: Everything you need can be found in the cPanel, and it's super easy so that anyone can use it.
- One-click install of over 150 apps: CMS, WordPress, Joomla, and more.
- Free website builder: GoCentral, their own website builder with a drag-and-drop function. Read more about the details below.
- Microsoft Office 365: GoDaddy offers top-notch e-mail services with Microsoft Office 365.
All these features and a lot more are offered with GoDaddy. The cPanel is full of different tools that make it easier for beginners to follow GoDaddy's suggestions, which will help set and maintain a website. In addition, GoDaddy uses Microsoft Office's security for e-mail and is full of security provisions to protect your data and monitor it.
For Advanced Users
Advanced users will be happy to know that GoDaddy supports multiple coding languages like Python, Perl, HTML, and other codes that they can use to create a website.
SEO
Besides the fast speeds and the secure website, what tools does GoDaddy provide to get you a higher SEO ranking?
You can purchase their SEO tools for $6.99/month that will include keyword suggestions and help you track your ranking.
Server Location
There are multiple server locations to choose from when hosting your website with GoDaddy. Whether you want it in Asia, the US, or Europe, you get to decide.
GoDaddy's Website Builder
If you're an advanced user, you'll be happy to know you can create a website from scratch. On the other hand, if you're a beginner, there's a website builder just for you called GoCentral. GoCentral is straightforward with a drag-and-drop editor. It offers good functions and responsive templates to different devices, so you won't have to worry about what the mobile website will look like.
You can download third-party apps like WordPress and Joomla to create your website. But, to be honest, relying on third-party apps like Wix is better than using GoDaddy's website builder.
GoDaddy E-Commerce
Are you selling your products online? If your answer is yes, GoDaddy has developed its user-friendly e-commerce software: GoDaddy E-Store. The store includes many features such as SEO tools, secure checkout, store themes, and unlimited product listings.
You start by selecting your theme, adding products, pricing, and images, then choosing your preferred payment and shipping method. Plus, you can get a 30-day free trial.
The Downside
Like everything else, GoDaddy has some disadvantages. They lack a few essential features like backup and site migrations. Moreover, SSL certification is only available for free with the Ultimate and Maximum plans. Nevertheless, you might have to pay extra for these features on your Economy or Deluxe plans.
However, they do make up for it by providing other features. These include a free domain, Microsoft Office, and unlimited bandwidth. You don't just get Microsoft Office with any web host. Additionally, they previously listened to their customers; hopefully, they'll do it again.
Conclusion
GoDaddy is a well-known web hosting service that hosts millions of sites. If you're looking for a service with high uptime, unlimited bandwidth, and multiple server locations to choose from, you should go for it.
However, like any other web hosting service, it has limitations, including no backup or site migration with their packages. Instead, you'll have to pay a small fee. But they previously listened to their customer's reviews about live chat, and hopefully, they'll do it again.
The question remains, do we recommend it? We definitely do. You'll be happy with all the features offered.
The choice is yours!
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